MikroKopter is a German company, a subsidiary of HiSystems GmbH, that manufactures battery-powered radio-controlled unmanned aerial vehicles. The company is located in Moormerland, Leer District, in Lower Saxony.
 | |
| Company type | Privately held company |
|---|---|
| Industry | Aerospace |
| Headquarters | , |
| Products | Miniature UAVs |
| Website | www |
History
editStarted in 2006 by Holger Buss and Ingo Busker, MikroKopter used a team of pilots to develop within 6 months a platform with great stability, manoeuvrability and powerful enough to lift a payload of several kilograms. Further developments, which incorporated an onboard GPS, piezo gyroscope, an acceleration sensor and a barometric sensor for altitude control, made autonomous flight possible and improved manoeuvrability.[1]
Products
editMikroKopter produce various multi-rotor models such as QuadroKopter (a quadcopter), HexaKopter and OktoKopter. The design lends itself to computer control and robotics researchers at the University of Pennsylvania have developed a program to control swarms of what they term 'Nano Quadrotors'. CCTV cameras provide feedback on position to the controlling computer, permitting complex manoeuvres that include tumbling.[2]
Parent HiSystems GmbH has developed a built-in LEA-6S GPS receiver, u-blox’ highest-performance GPS module for MikroKopter aircraft that allows precision positioning for photography and other applications.[3]
Operational use
editIn February 2012 an animal rights group used a MikroKopter to film hunters shooting pigeons in South Carolina. The hunters shot the drone down.[4][better source needed]
References
edit- ^ "en/Mikrokopter-Get-started - Wiki". MikroKopter.de. 24 October 2006. Retrieved 27 January 2014.
- ^ Huffington Post - Nano Quadrotor Drones
- ^ MikroKopter captures precision photos and videos Archived 2011-10-23 at the Wayback Machine
- ^ Zimmerman, Dan (18 February 2013) Hunters Shoot SHARK Drone Over South Carolina The Truth about Guns, Retrieved 5 February 2013